


Like Something Out of a Dream

by xisuthros



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Christmas Party, F/M, Fluff and Angst, felicity gives some advice, snowberry feels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-12
Updated: 2015-12-12
Packaged: 2018-05-06 06:11:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5405984
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xisuthros/pseuds/xisuthros
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Caitlin attends the annual CCPD winter ball and notices Patty flirting with Barry and makes a bold move.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Like Something Out of a Dream

The starry winter sky glittered above the towers of Central City while a sharp gust of wind caused Caitlin to tighten the coat on her shoulders as she reached the Central City Police Department. It had been completely decorated for its annual winter ball, with tinsel around every pillar and Christmas trees near every corner. She thanked a doorman as he opened one of the doors for her and was greeted immediately by the fresh scent of pine. Apparently Barry had actually convinced the Captain to get real trees this year, and she had to say it made the atmosphere seem that much more authentic. 

As Caitlin made her way to the main hall, she said hello to the various people she had come to know during the past year. Being a part of Team Flash meant constantly being on contact with the police, and Caitlin had made a few friends with some of the officers. After promising to catch up with one of the forensic scientists, she finally made her way to the main hall and was amazed at the sight before her. 

The only way to describe the scene in front of her was to say it looked like one of the dances that she heard about in fairy tales when she was a little girl. To each side, there were golden fountains of punch with various attendants pouring drinks and offering appetizers. On the walls, there were all sorts of different decorations of every color and shape, all glittering and shining down on the masses below. Tinsel was once again present in the room as were the wreaths and mistletoe that hung from every door. To her right a live jazz band was playing, their rhythmic tunes carrying throughout the hall like the music of a pied piper. But what was most astounding were the dozens of couples in the middle of the floor, surrounded by bystanders, who were dancing fluidly together like a synchronized team. 

As she watched, the men dressed in sharp tuxedoes spun their female dates around, the various dresses and material twirling like something from a romantic movie. It was beautiful to watch. Caitlin moved off to the side to get a better view when suddenly she was greeted by Cisco and Laurel, who were linked arm and arm.

“Hey Caitlin!” Cisco said cheerfully. “Glad you could make it!”

“Oh, Caitlin you look stunning!” gushed Laurel as she took in her friend’s dress. 

It wasn’t anything fancy, but it was once of her nicer dresses. It was dark blue and perfect for an event like this, with a scooped neck and a open back, her neck and fingers adorned with simple but elegant jewelry. Her hair was put up in the back while her front was gently curled. Her makeup, she had to admit, was perfectly done. Still, she blushed slightly.

“Oh, this is nothing. Look at you!” Caitlin replied, motioning for Laurel to giver her a twirl. The Star City vigilante cleaned up nice; she had on a glittering black dress that highlighted all her curves and had on a simple sliver bird necklace. Subtle, she smiled to herself. 

Cisco tightened his hold around Laurel’s arm as he noticed some of the passing looks of the various officers. “You do look extremely beautiful, both of you.” He added quickly as Caitlin mocked being offended. Laurel laughed when he looked panicked for a split second. The engineer then nudged Laurel and nodded towards the dance floor. “Would you care for a dance?” he asked in his most regal tone. Caitlin snorted while he threw her an exasperated look. 

Laurel’s eyes glittered as she took his hand, letting him lead her towards the synchronized throngs. “Are you sure you know how to do whatever it is they’re doing?” Caitlin heard her ask.

“Well if I don’t, I’m going to have a serious conversation with my neighbor Mrs. Granby. I didn’t spend weeks being surrounded by fat cats and violated by an old lady learning how to waltz just to be embarrassed when it counts!” 

Caitlin laughed as Laurel threw her an alarmed but amused glance over her shoulder. 

“Well, they look like they’re having fun.” Came a teasing voice behind her. As she turned, Caitlin saw Felicity Smoak on the arm of Oliver Queen. Both of them looked downright sinful, with her striking red dress and his sharp tuxedo. How was it that two people could look that beautiful?

After giving them both a hug, she nodded back towards the pair, who were now dancing in sync along with everyone else. “They are. Laurel looks like she’s having the time of her life and Cisco looks like he just won the lottery.” All three of them grinned as Cisco spotted them and gave them a thumbs up. 

“To be honest, I never imagined the two of them together.” Oliver remarked, sipping a glass of champagne. “But they seem like they’re having fun, and I know Laurel adores him. I haven’t seen her smile this much in years.” Felicity nodded.

“After Kendra, I was afraid Cisco wouldn’t put himself out there again. Thank goodness for immortal warriors with magic staffs of doom to bring us together, right babe?” Oliver smiled and hummed in response as he put his glass down. 

“Speaking of putting yourself out there,” Felicity muttered to Caitlin as Oliver became distracted with meeting some of the police officers. “Where’s Barry? I haven’t seen him yet.”

At his name, Caitlin’s heart automatically did a flip. Silently, she berated herself for feeling like this every time his name was mentioned or he walked into a room. Over the past few months, her initial crush on her friend and teammate had grown into something more. As much as she tried to fight it, she was now hopelessly in love with Barry Allen and it was starting to get in the way of her social life. Usually, she would go out with some of her friends on the weekends, but now she was spending nearly every spare hour at STAR Labs. For his part, Barry seemed oblivious but there were times that he looked at her a certain way or lingered his hand on her shoulder for a second more than he should have that she dared herself to dream that maybe he felt the same way about her. It was silly, but as much as her heart ached she hadn’t had the courage to tell him how she felt. Felicity had been one of the few people she had confided in. 

“I don’t know, I haven’t seen him yet either.” she admitted, scanning the surrounding people. Her friend’s words caught up with her. “Don't be like that.” She said to a grinning Felicity. “Barry doesn’t think of me that way. I don’t want to ruin what we already have, which is nice.” 

Suddenly, Felicity seemed to adopt a serious look as she looked away from Caitlin and towards Oliver, who was talking to the mayor of Central City. “I’ve been exactly where you are.” She said quietly. “I had a crush on that goofball since the minute he walked into my office at what was then Queen Consolidated. When I found out he was a vigilante, those feelings just magnified as we grew closer in our work and personal lives. Every time he would come back from a mission or a late-night patrol, I would always be there to patch him up or give him a word of advice. In turn, he would listen to me talk about me day, which frankly I couldn’t with anyone else because of what we do. What we had then and still have, it was a beautiful friendship and to be perfectly honest I was okay with having just that.” In her eyes, Caitlin could see her going back through her memory.

“But then came the other women.” She went on. Caitlin smiled at her, earning herself a poke in the ribs. “I know it seems silly, but when he started dating other women and especially when Sara joined the team, I felt out of place. Suddenly, I wasn’t the only girl in his life and it hurt. He didn’t owe me anything, and at that point he gave no indication that he felt the same way about me. But he took me aside and told me that I was important to him and that I wasn’t someone that he could replace. To me, that meant the world.” Felicity’s eyes shone as she looked at her fiancé. 

“From that point on, we played a cat-and-mouse game with each other, flirting here and there, neither one of us really voicing our feelings. Honestly Caitlin, it was both agonizing and wonderful. But eventually I had had enough. After our date literally got blown up and he stuck his righteous head up his ass, I decided to move on. But in the end, it was unnecessary and hurt everyone involved. Yes, it was good to realize that I had other options but it was taking the long road to each other that caused us heartbreak. I would have saved myself a ton of ice cream and time if I had voiced my feelings earlier. If I had gotten over my own issues and helped him deal with his demons sooner, we could have been together much earlier. That time, I won’t ever get back. I’m grateful that we finally found our way towards each other, but I would have loved to have even one more month together with that idiot of a man.” 

Both of them giggled as Oliver rolled his eyes at them over the shoulder of a very important-looking politician that was seemingly in the midst of giving the vigilante a long-winded speech.

Felicity turned and gently took Caitlin’s shoulders. “My point is, don’t let yourself waste the time you have now. Don't let him get involved with someone else and then realize that you’re in irrevocably in love with him. That’s a pain I would never wish on anyone. Tell him how you feel.” Caitlin sighed and looked at her, a nervous sensation in her stomach. 

“She’s right, Caitlin.” Came Oliver’s voice behind Felicity, causing them both to jump. Damn him and his assassin-level hearing. Felicity’s face looked as red as her dress as her friend realized that her vigilante fiancé had heard everything.

“She’s always right.” He said fondly, as he pecked her gently on the lips. Oliver looked back at Caitlin. “I know Barry better than he thinks. And trust me when I tell you, he feels the same way.” Her eyes widened as this new information seemed to make her brain freeze. 

He laughed. “Yes, he does. I’m telling you, if I have to keep watching the two of you gazing each other across rooms or hear one more of his long stories about you, I just might shoot myself with an arrow.” He placed a hand on her shoulder. “Don’t do what I did and wait too long.” Felicity tightened her grip on his arm and quietly looked up at him. “Time is precious. Make the most of it.” 

Caitlin nodded as she started to gather her thoughts. The Star City city power couple bid her goodnight and headed towards the dance floor, with Felicity whispering behind her. 

“I expect a phone call tomorrow! Let me know how it goes!” Caitlin looked nervously at her as Felicity was led to join the dance. 

Sighing and resigning herself to her fate, she looked around the room for the man in question. Caitlin spotted Dr. Wells talking with Joe off to the side, both of them obviously a little tipsy. She was just about to give up when she suddenly saw him near the door. 

He was dressed in a handsome tuxedo, clean-shaven and with a new haircut. Even from across the room, she knew that he looked downright gorgeous. Just as she was making her way over to him, Caitlin noticed he was deep in conversation with Patty Spivot, Joe’s detective partner. Even though he didn’t look like he was egging her on, 

Patty was looking at him with an unbridled gaze of adoration. By the way she moved and the way her eyes kept darting up to his, Caitlin knew that she was flirting heavily with him. 

Something erupted in her chest, like a dormant volcano, slowly coursing through her veins like a fever. She knew Patty and knew that she was a nice girl, but right then and there she wanted nothing more than to pour a drink over her pretty face. Barry was smiling easily, but she could tell he was either oblivious to her flirting or was actively ignoring her advances. Still, jealousy surged through Caitlin as she made her way towards them, the crowd around her fading in her peripheral vision. 

“...should really take you sometime. You’d really love it!” Came Patty’s sensuous voice followed by Barry’s laugh. It struck through her for a moment and Caitlin suddenly realized how much she loved his laugh. After hearing Patty’s voice again, however, she quickly came back to herself and made her way up to the pair of them. 

“Oh hi, Caitlin!” said Barry cheerfully. He looked down at her dress. “You look beautiful.” His tone was one of awe and despite herself, Caitlin blushed furiously. 

“Hey there, Caitlin.” said Patty, who was sipping on a glass of champagne. “You do look lovely.” There was no resentment in her tone, but it didn’t stop Caitlin from suddenly looping her arm around Barry’s. 

“Thank you, Patty.” she said cooly. “But if you don’t mind, I’m going to have to steal him from you.” Without further preamble and to the surprise of Barry, she took his arm and pulled him further into the hall towards the dance floor. 

“Caitlin, what-” He was cut off as they reached the crowd and she pulled him in, taking his hand and putting one on his shoulder. True to his status of being the fastest man alive, he adjusted quickly and shifted his footing while placing a hand to her hip, which sent shivers down her spine. 

After a few second of getting into rhythm, Barry finally looked at her with a questioning expression. “What was that about?” 

As she opened her mouth, the adrenaline that powered her past few minutes suddenly seemed to vanish and all she could think about was how good he smelled or how perfectly his hand seemed to fit on her hip. Or how his eyes seemed to dance when they looked into hers...

Inhaling sharply, Caitlin regrettably took the easy way out. “You looked like you could use an escape. Patty was really laying it on thick back there.” To her surprise, Barry looked grateful.

“Yeah.” He agreed. “I mean, she’s nice but its not really a good idea. Besides, she’s not really my type.” His tone went from conversational to taking a slightly more meaningful tone, but maybe it was just her ears playing with her. However, his eyes seemed to linger on hers for a fraction of a second too long before he looked around him. 

Taking the opportunity to gather her thoughts, Barry twirled her in sync with everyone else and brought her back to him in once smooth motion. As she tried to keep her brain under control from having his hands on her waist like that, Caitlin caught a glimpse of Patty in the crowd, eyeing Barry with a slightly yearning expression. Again, that possessive feeling erupted in her chest. 

Just as the song wound down, Caitlin acted without thinking. One second, she was looking into Barry’s eyes and the next she had moved her hand from his shoulder to the side of his face and had slowly slid her lips across his. Her other hand left his and went to a place on his lower back.

Though he was initially surprised, no one was more surprised than Caitlin when he suddenly melted into her kiss, deepening it and moving his hand to the small of her back while the other on stayed at her waist. Their kiss slowly became more frantic, as if the other was afraid that it would be the only time that this would happen again and was trying to make the most of it. She tilted her head to allow him to deepen the kiss while he ran his tongue across her bottom lip, eliciting a small moan from the back of her throat. Caitlin’s hand went from his face to grip the front of his jacket tightly while he grabbed her hip so tightly she was sure they would leave beautiful bruises the next day. Though their lips kept battling furiously, both of them realized that they still needed oxygen. 

Parting slowly, Barry and Caitlin rested their foreheads against each other, their mouths mere inches from one another, breathing heavily. She never wanted this moment to end, standing there with the man she was irrevocably in love with, who she now realized was in love with her as well. Slowly, they became aware that everything was quiet around them. 

Nervously looking around, her stomach dropped when they noticed the whole hall looking at them, with even the band stopping with their instruments still in the playing position. Barry coughed anxiously before Cisco and Oliver spoke out of the crowd simultaneously. 

“Its about damn time!”

Everyone laughed and clapped at the pair of them, who felt like they had just won some award. Apparently many of them had been rooting for the pair that just stood in the dance floor looking flabbergasted. 

Felicity beamed at her from the crowd while she noticed Patty giving her friend a high-five. Suddenly, Caitlin realized that it had all been a set-up, albeit a much-needed one. She was going to have a very pointed conversation tomorrow with Felicity about the nature of boundaries. But for now, she was distracted with the feeling of Barry kissing the side of her head.

Looking up at him, she was struck with just how wonderful this moment was. Maybe instead of a lecture, she should buy Felicity and Patty some chocolate. 

He motioned to door that led to some of the offices. “I feel like we should talk about this?” He asked tentatively. “I think the time is long overdue that we discuss what this is.” He motioned between the two of them. “And about the fact that I’ve been chickening out about telling you how I feel for months.” 

“Believe me,” She assured him as they linked arms and moved towards the door. “You’re not the only one.” This earned her a quick peck on the lips.

Caitlin glanced out the window and noticed that it had begun snowing lightly, the flakes blowing in the wind like they were dancing along with the music that had just resumed. This night was quickly becoming the best one of her life.


End file.
